1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to network-based remote monitoring technology, and more particularly, to a network-based lighting equipments remote monitoring and management system which allows the user to remotely monitor and perform management tasks on one or more sets of remotely-located lighting equipment systems in a real-time manner via a network system.
2. Description of Related Art
Lighting apparatuses are electricity-consuming devices that are widely installed in nearly all kinds of buildings, including office buildings, factories, hotels, restaurants, hospitals, supermarkets, warehouses, department stores, to name just a few. Types of commonly used lighting apparatuses include fluorescent lamps, incandescent lamps, halide lamps, to name a few. Fundamentally, lighting apparatuses are used to provide a light source that can illuminate a darkened space within a confined room so as to allow people staying in the room to have a bright environment to live or work therewithin.
In the management of a system of lighting apparatuses installed in a building, the management personnel usually need to monitor the operating status of the lighting equipment system during operation. For example, the management personnel need to inspect the ON/OFF state, electricity utilization conditions (load voltage, load current, and power consumption in watts), and whether the produced luminosity is adequate to provide good visibility. Moreover, the management personnel need to constantly check whether all the individual lighting units (bulbs, fluorescent tubes, etc.) in the lighting equipment system operate normally. If any lighting unit is flashing or burned out, the management personnel need to repair or replace the bad lighting unit. In addition, for energy saving purposes, the management personnel need to learn the total power consumption by the lighting equipment system during a certain period, so that it can be used as a reference for efficient and cost-effective management in the utilization of the lighting equipment system.
Traditionally, the above-mentioned lighting equipment management tasks are carried out by human labor, i.e., the inspection of the operating status of the lighting equipment is carried out through visual inspection by the management personnel, and the recording of operating characteristics data (i.e., load voltage, load current, and power consumption in watts) is carried out by visually inspecting electronic instruments and then handwriting on papers. When it is required to analyze these operating characteristics data to learn the energy consumption of the lighting equipment, the management personnel then need to perform calculations and analysis through handwork and paperwork.
One apparent drawback to the above-mentioned practice is that the paperwork and handwork is highly tedious, laborious, and time-consuming and therefore highly inefficient for the management personnel to implement. In addition, in the event of an abnormal operating condition of the lighting equipment, the management personnel usually cannot be informed of this condition promptly in real time, thus causing a delay to the maintenance/repair work.